1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to household wares but more particularly to a device which compresses plastic bottles in order to keep CO2 inside the liquid as well as reduces the surface exposed to air which reduces oxidation and at the same time reduces storage volume of the bottle.
2. Background of the Invention
Large containers are practical and economical but they have the inconvenience that if they are not used-up quickly, the CO2 will escape from the liquid and the drink will become flat. Indeed CO2 in solution tends to reach pressure equilibrium between the liquid and the ambient air, therefore, the greater the amount of air space, the quicker the release of CO2 and the faster the liquid becomes flat, which affects the taste of the beverage. There is also the problem of oxydation of the beverage which affects its taste and the storage space required by uncompressed bottles.
In order to eliminate these drawbacks, some enterprising inventors have dreamed up a variety of ways to keep air pressure inside the bottle higher than the pressure of the CO2 in solution. Some methods involve the injection of air, while more practical methods involve reducing the volume of the bottle so that there is little escape volume available for the CO2.
The problem with reducing the volume of bottles is that it can create cracks, creases or punctures in the bottle which make matters worse.
Another problem with the prior art is that they are rather large and bulky.
To correct those problems, this inventor has applied for a patent, currently pending, concerned with a device which corrected some of those problems.
With the advent of automatic plastic recycling machines which read bar code on bottles, it was considered important to make sure that once crushed, the bar code on the bottle could still be visible and that the bottle could still fit into the round opening of the machine.
Yet another problem is that once compressed with existing devices, bottles do not necessarily have a shape that can easily be entered into recycling machines or if entered, the bar code may not be legible by the machine.
For these needs, an improved method of compressing a bottle without damaging it, preserving the bar code intact and allowing for insertion into the opening of recycling machines had to be found.